Built in 1738, the Royal Palace of Madrid has been the residence of numerous monarchs since its construction. The most recent of which being the House of Liafador. Descended from Spanish general and fascist dictator Francisco Franco, the Liafador family has held a ruling presence in Spain long before Ziccarra Liafador's rise to hold the position of the country's Prime Minister.

Residing in the western part of downtown Madrid, the palace has recently become commonly referred to as the ‘Liafador Palace,' due to the Prime Minister of Spain, Ziccarra Liafador, and her family’s occupation of the historical monument. While members of the House of Liafador reside in various locations throughout the world, the Liafador Palace has become the ‘headquarters’ of the prolific family.

East Facade

The main facade of the Palace consists of a two-story rusticated stone base, from which rise Tuscan and Composite pilasters framing the windows of the three main floors. The upper story is hidden behind a cornice which encircles the building and is capped with a large balustrade. The balustrade was adorned with a series of statues of saints and kings, but these were relocated elsewhere to give the building a more classical appearance.

Both the Plaza de la Armeria and the Plaza de Oriente frame the palace. A number of gardens also adorn the exterior of the palace, including the Camp del Moro Gardens and Sabatini Gardens, as well as a park, cathedral, and statues of the popularly known Gothic kings. The Campo del Moro Gardens are periodically used in the summertime to hold receptions and gala dinners.

Palace Exterior

The palace has 1,450,000 square feet of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the largest palace in Europe by floor area. The interior of the palace is notable for its wealth of art and the use of many types of fine materials in the construction and the decoration of its rooms. These include paintings by artists such as Caravaggio, Velázquez and Francisco de Goya and frescoes by Corrado Giaquinto, Juan de Flandes, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo and Anton Raphael Mengs.

Royal Library

The Royal Library was founded during the regency of Maria Christina, using funds that the royal family had accumulated for centuries. Highlights of the collection include the Book of hours of Isabella I of Castile, a codex of the time of Alfonso XI of Castile, a Bible of Doña María de Molina and the Fiestas reales. Also important are the maps kept in the library, which analyze the extent of the kingdoms under the Spanish Empire. Also on display a selection of the best medals from the Royal Collection.

The Archives of the Royal Palace contains approximately twenty thousand articles ranging from the Disastrous decade (1823-1833) to the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic in 1931.

The palace's armory is considered one of the best in the world and consists of pieces as early as the 15th century. The collection highlights the tournament pieces made for Charles V and Philip II by the leading armorers of Milan and Augsburg. Among the most remarkable works are full armor and weapons that Emperor Charles V used in the Battle of Mühlberg, and which was portrayed by Titian in his famous equestrian portrait housed at the Museo del Prado.

Many modern pieces accumulated by the House of Liafador have also been added to the armory’s collection.

Palace Interior

Rules:

This location is occupied by the Prime Minister of Spain (Ziccarra Liafador) and the members of the House of Liafador

While the exterior is relatively open to the public, the interior is a private residence and anyone outside the Liafador family should have a reason for entering

The attack on Malaga was the end of an Era for the Liafador Family, the city that housed their rise aided by the Red Cardinals; had been destroyed. Thanks to Ziccarra’s role as Spanish Prime Minister; the family was uprooted and moved to beautiful Madrid. Maya’s status as a super-model was the source of her popularity where; whereas in Malaga it was from being a Liafador.

The move to the palace was an unexpected one considering the private lives of her parents, and truthfully; she preferred Emerald City it was geared towards more her lifestyle. Here she was a diplomat--the daughter of the Prime Minister; often time Selene would tell her to relax and allow herself to enjoy being who she was.

“Augh! You’re getting heavy Tassi!” she grunted picking the youngest Liafador from her crib and making her way towards Selene’s room. “Let’s go see what your cousin is up to.”

It's very blah, but I'm burned for the day. And I still have to make dinner >.<

Selene’s slender figure lay buried under the collection of plush blankets that adorned her spacious bed. Pulling the cover nearly up to her chin, she kept her hands free to allow her to scroll through Instagram on the Space Grey iPhone 6 that she held by her face. Her fingers, embellished with lengthy pale pink acrylic nails, guided the touchscreen past various pictures posted by her friends, fashion accounts, or other celebrities she had met in the past. Pausing to look at her sister, as she had always considered her, Maya’s post of herself backstage at her latest runway show, Selene added her like to the hundreds of thousands the photo had already received, before locking the phone and setting it somewhere in the ocean of blankets she lain under.

Rolling over to her side, Selene pondered how swiftly her life had changed since the destruction of the Liafador home in Malaga. Life in Madrid was buzzing, exciting, and every day presented itself with someone knew to meet and somewhere new to explore. It almost reminded her of her life in Beverly Hills, however Madrid offered an even greater abundance of history and culture to experience.

But with her new life in Madrid came a new set of responsibilities she hadn’t anticipated. With both Selene and Maya’s careers skyrocketing, Selene as a socialite icon and Maya as the face of a new generation of models, the teenage Liafador pair faced even greater everyday attention from the media.

It also seemed, to Selene, that the more the need for a future head of the Liafador family rose, the more apparent it became that she would fit the role. Maya had always been destined to pave a road for herself outside of her family’s legacy, seemingly through modeling, while Selene had always naturally embraced the confidence and leadership of Ziccarra.

Casting these thoughts aside, Selene began focusing on the PartyNextDoor song playing from the speakers in her room, when a knock at her door woke her from dozing into her second nap of her day.

“Come in!” she called, sitting up without moving from the comfort of her blankets. Tucking a strand of her black hair, recently shortened by the removal of her extensions, she waited to see who would come through the door.

With Tassi in one hand, Maya took the silver dish from the concierge; who just so happened to be moving towards Selene’s room. “Wakey Wakey!” Maya screamed boisterously with Tassi in one hand; omelet in the other. “Here the butler…guy...man...person, made this for you” She said, sitting the dish on a nightstand beside her bed.

She sat with the always energetic Tassi in her lap just eying Selene; she was truly the sister Maya never had. Tassi was much too young to understand any of Maya’s problems and Catalina was—well she was Catalina. Selene was the same age and enjoyed much of the same things Maya did; they both attended school at the Huntington Academy, and were both poised to be successful in their career choices.

“I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever!” She said playfully; allowing her lithe frame to plop down on top of Selene. “Get up, get dressed let’s go do something!” She pleaded knowing this was one of the only times during the week day they’d have to just hang out.

While they led similar careers, Maya’s schedule changed daily; she was flying international just about every day; and the little time they did get together was spent at school or following a major show.

“I need to go out and get Tassi a few things for mom’s ball later this week anyway. She’s supposed to be meeting with @_animus_about some sort of deal and wants us all there” Maya’s eyes rolled a bit, it was well known through the house that Maya and Ziccarra were a potential powder keg; which was strange because Ziccarra was especially close to Selene.

Maya liked that they were so close; because it kept Z off her back. “I don’t even think I’ll go, but I won’t let her continue to dress Tassi in those stupid floral pattern dress’.

“Maya!” at the sight of her sister, and Maya’s boisterous greeting, Selene was instantly woken from her languid lounging. Their respective careers often placed the girls on different sides of the globe, and having both of them home together was a rare occurrence. Maya stayed especially busy with modeling in New York or opening runway shows in Paris, however Selene pursued her own various business ventures as well, such as recently celebrating in London that she had become the new celebrity face of a popular makeup company.

Selene lifted Tassi from Maya and cuddled her in bed next to her, while Maya sprawled her supple figure over the blankets. No matter how busy their schedules got or how heavy the family drama was, it was times like this, just hanging out with each other in their rooms, that reminded Selene just how important Maya and the rest of her family was to her. They were the one constant in her constantly changing life.

“I thought you weren’t back from Paris for another few days?” she asked while simultaneously rising from her nest of blankets and pacing to her spacious closet to obey Maya’s demand that she get ready.

When it seemed so much of her life was dictated by what other people said or wrote about her, fashion had always been a way for Selene to have her own voice to express herself exactly how she wanted to. Her style had always been heavily influenced by the other women in her family, from Maya to Ziccarra, but she also drew inspiration from other modern-day style icons like Valerie Huntington.

While browsing through a rack of clothes she had yet to wear, she listened to Maya talk about the upcoming ball and her weariness with their mom’s habit to dress Tassi in what seemed to always be the same floral look. Laughing, she peered out her closet to shoot a pleading look at her sister. “Come on, you have to go. I’m going, and you’re always off modeling when we have these events and leave me to be bored all night. You have to go this time,” she begged Maya before finally settling on an outfit for the day. Changing out of a pair of grey pajama shorts and loose white t-shirt, Selene replaced them with a chic ensemble of a grey crop top, high-rise white pencil skirt, and black stiletto boots.

Taking twenty minutes in the bathroom to apply her makeup, she chatted with Maya about her stories during fashion week and gossiped about their classmates at the Huntington Academy. No matter how much time passed between the Liafador sisters, their relationship remained just as strong every time they were reunited.

Completely ready for a day out with her two sisters, Selene was sure to capture a quick selfie of her and Maya before grabbing her grey alligator Givenchy Antigona bag and sunglasses. “So, how about we find some non-floral outfits for Tassi first, then treat ourselves to some shopping too?” she said with a grin, already texting the family driver to let him know they’d be down soon.

“Well, I just flew in this morning; I was outside admiring that big ass garden” She said, once again taking a seat with Tassi playing with her chin. “I went for two reasons, one for the show; which I did really well in; and the other for this movie role my agent lined up for me.” She said pulling her face away from Tassi’s curious fingers. “Idiots thought I was the other one. So I left” She said indirectly mentioning Catalina. Ever since Cat destroyed Malaga; Maya made a habit of not mentioning her directly.

She found her eyes rolling again at the thought of having to sit at a political ball, but agreed only to ameliorate conditions with her mother. “Fine, I’ll save you from you from the boredom, but I’m not taking pictures with anyone’s kids” It happened too often at these political galas; too often people would come up to her expecting her to WANT to take a picture.

Drawing close she smiled for Selene’s selfie; before perching Tassi on her hip. “I saw you landed the London Gig congrats, weren’t you supposed to be showing up at one of Chris Browns tour cities?” That was Selene’s life; seemingly every day she was thrown amongst a milieu of celebrities. Maya admired it about her, Selene was able to go virtually anywhere and have a celebrity gravitate to HER—Maya not too much; while she knew a great deal of famous people she didn’t know them on such a personal level like Selene did.

“I’m down for some shopping too, truthfully I haven’t had the time to go out and actually see what this place is about. It’s not Malaga, I know that much.” Maya said, walking down the spiraling staircase next to Selene realizing they were about to become the center of a media storm.

“I think this will be the first time I’ve been out in public with Tassi…” She said, running her hands through the young infant’s hair. “I don’t think she’s ready” Maya said with a hearty chuckle. The young toddler didn't make the slightest of sounds instead, her head bounced around the area, as if she were trying to get a feel for where they were. Maya could tell she was excited because there was a subtle vibration resounding through her arms.

The incandescent heat of Madrid’s sun hit her amber tinted aviator Ray Bands; she couldn’t help but let out a disappointed sigh at not being able to drive her GT Insipid—an expensive birthday present her father had made just for her.

Placing her grey Janessa Leone “walker hat” over her head, the sister trio sauntered into the black stretch limousine feeling the wind with each step in the holes of her ripped jeans. The crew neck sweater and jean combo was a telltale back in Malaga, people would see a variation of it coupled with her hat and know it was her. The one change was the Balenciaga flat boots she actually scored for Selene.

“Hey” She said, pushing down on the button that partitioned them off from the driver. “Can I call you Alfred?” She asked with a wind filled chuckle. “Hey, where do we want to go to the mall or what??

Accustomed to dealing with the frenzy of cameramen and journalists that assailed them every time they went out in public, due to both their famous family as well as their own careers, Selene and Maya kept their sunglasses-adorned faces down with a hand raised to shield their face, while Maya kept Tassi guarded protectively in arms. The girls swiftly entered the awaiting limousine, granting them the privacy to once again relax.

As the sleek black vehicle rolled through the breathtaking streets of Madrid, Selene couldn’t help but miss the freedom she had to drive her own cars in Malaga or Beverly Hills—even if she did receive the occasional speeding ticket. Despite the Liafador family’s ability to physically travel innumerous times faster than even the most admired super car, they had still amassed an invaluable collection of luxury vehicles.

As much as she missed both Mala and Beverly Hills, she couldn’t deny, while looking out the limousine’s tinted windows, just how much Madrid had to offer. Driving through its streets was like driving back in time. Every about the city – its buildings, its art, its language, its culture – they all seemed to be frozen in a romantic portrait of the past. As she caught a fleeting glimpse of a coupling strolling hand-in-hand down the street, Selene couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to fall in love in a city like Madrid.

As her mind wandered, and Maya entertained Tassi, Selene had barely noticed they had arrived at their destination. Remembering the layout of stores from her previous visits, she turned to Maya to tell her sister their best route for a day of shopping. “Let’s go into Chloe first. I was shopping in there the other day and saw the cutest pink dress for Tassi,” she said, grinning as she let the youngest Liafador squeeze her finger and giggle affectionately.

Taking her turn to rest her little sister on her hip, the two Liafador teens once again braced themselves for the flash of paparazzi as they covered the short path from their limousine to the interior of the designer boutique. Chloe offered a majority of luxury womenswear, however Selena and Maya headed to a smaller section where a collection of chic children’s clothes were displayed. Picking through anything not floral, Selene tried to catch up with her sister while they had the time.

“So what’ve you been up to besides modeling?” she paused for a moment, unsure whether to bring up the next topic. Deciding it was something they should probably talk about eventually, she went ahead anyway. “I know a lot has gone on between you, Cat, and Leo, but I haven’t heard the details,” the end of her sentence trailed as she looked between a rack of clothes to gauge Maya’s reaction to the question.

"Hey. We don't stop when we're tired. We stop when we're done", Leonel's voice, low and with a cool, personable charisma cut through the atmosphere of silence like a knife as the silhouette of his distant frame hovered ever closer, both arms folded before his chest as he inched closer to his father, Thee Champion's panting frame. "Yeah...", he paused, taking the time to gather his breath, "Is this what you usually do in your free time?", Alexis inquired, "You don't wanna model like your sister? You have the golden boy good looks, you know?", the proud father chuckled, garnering a taciturn smirk of self-confidence from the levitating Leonel, "Right", he smiled, "But this is a more productive way for me to spend my time".

"That and its fun", Leonel confessed with a shrug, his feet touching the reflective floor beneath them. "What, learning new ways to kill your enemies?", Thee Champion remarked with a tone and expression of mild disapproval. While he understood his son and Ziccarra's ruthless, no-nonsense approach to wasting their enemies, he was always partially concerned with Leonel's tendency to force his enemies to feel powerless and humiliated before doing away with them. A part of him often quelled those thoughts by remembering that his son had told him it was simply to make the villainous experience the fear and sense of hopelessness they forced many to experience. "Come on, dad. You know its not about that. Besides, you and I, we're different".

"Physically I might resemble you, but I'm a lot more like mom. I'm not Champ Jr. I'm the Azure Son, and the Azure Son is all about becoming the strongest version of himself. Figuratively, and literally", he answered with resolve and assurance in his words. "I have to be ready for anything and everything. And I will be". Responding to his son's words with a yielding smile and nod, Alexis wiggled his arms, "No you're right. And you're already stronger than me", he chuckled, "Alright, let's go again". Smirking, Leonel clenched both fists as electrical arcs surged all about their encompassment before an outward flailing aura of electromagnetic energy enveloped his frame, his eyes growing devoid of their pupils and irises, generating a constant glow of luminous gold. Similarly, Alexis' herculean frame was lit by a flaming aura of superheated plasma, his eyes adopting a vibrant, crimson glow as both New Gods resumed their sparring session.

Their bout's setting? A room in the Liafador Palace, one constructed with the combined genius of both father and son. Through the door, only things made possible by the wonders of quantum-mechanical technology existed. It was a personal quantum dimensional pocket. Its surroundings were defined by a constant bright iridescent white aura. There was no night or day, and the room's boundaries stretched to infinity in all directions despite its appearance implying that it held a definite atmosphere. The flow of time was different, allowing one to spend years in the room, while exhausting only days in real life. And its gravity, which could be adjusted, dwarfed that of any ordinary star. It was the only training room that could not only survive but contain the awe-inspiring might of the New Gods.